Hello Thrillers!

You probably have tripled the number reading my blog now :) I cruise the thriller ring twice a week but waited awhile to connect to it. See, I am so very technodeficient, that every time I tried to change the layout on my old blog, it would end up a mess. In fact that's where the name came for this blog, I had to dump the old one, and start "a better fiber blog"

I am envious of everyone's beatiful blogs with pictures. I aim to join those folks at some point. But for right now you will have to live with my verbal descriptions, and lowly blogger blog.

All week long I have been getting things ready for doing a demo of spinning both Sat and Sun. It's not just a pick up my wheel and go deal. I made a 'it'll do' costume, by making a long skirt and an outer back tie skirt. I'll use my Ren Faire blouse, and a gray shawl. I still want to make an apron.

Oh that is something interesting. I had decided I wanted to make an apron from some old feedsacks that I had in stash. I picked up about a dozen of them at an auction once. I found a one that had a lovely pink stripe down both sides, and thought it would look great with my costume. But when I went to cut it open, I realized that it was woven without a seam. That is unusual in feedsacks and now I wonder if it was really a pillowcase, albeit, very heavy cotton. So it did not meet the sacrificial scissors, I found another one to use. Woven round is really neat, think like a sock machine only with fabric.

But I digress. Along with getting a costume, I also pulled out and updated my educational boards about different fibers used for spinning. I will have a basket of washed fleece, carders, and a drop spindle and my ashford traditional. I hope to spin what I need for my frog hair during this weekend since my ashford has a lace flyer on it. That should be shetland locks and cormo locks. I was thinking in my head about yardage needed. Eleven people, with enough to give about 2 yards singles wrapped on a cardboard, and about 5 yards of 2 ply to wash, means roughly at least 132 yards singles. I think it should be doable over sat and sun even with the questions from passers by.

The only thing I have left to do to get ready are labelling some skeins I would like to sell. I went through all my hand spun this week, sorted out what I wanted to keep, and put what was left in a rubbermaid tub. Some of it was already priced from the booths I do. But there is alot that I had originally planned to keep, or I had just not gotten labelled before the shows. I came up with an idea to package some of the matching skeins into project bags instead of selling them separately. I do not have any that would be enough for a sweater, but could push them for a child sweater, or matching hat gloves and mittens. Most of what I have is in the bulky range-I sure hope knitters are still interested in bulky yarn still. With the closeness of the holiday knitting deadlines maybe it will be appealing.

CW